more ↠ lrh

forty-eight

I woke up to someone holding my hand, my head pounding and my entire body aching.

I blinked a bunch of times to clear my vision before looking to the left to see who was beside me. Luke sat there, his eyes closed his his thumb moving over my knuckles, comforting me.

All the memories flashed through my head, reminding me that through everything he was still here. I remembered everything. 

"Luke." I said, my voice scratchy from lack of use. 

He moved, his eyes opening and looking at me. "Arabella."

My full name. He hardly ever uses my full name.

"What happened?" 

"You were in an accident." He said, moving closer to me.

"An accident?" I asked. "Who are you?"

Luke sighed heavily, looking down at our hands. "Not again."

"I'm just fucking with you," I said, trying to lighten to mood. "Sorry."

"Fuck, Bell, don't do that." Luke laughed lightly, pressing a kiss to my hand.

"I remember."

He looked up at me. "Remember what?"

"Everything."

"Really?" he asked me. "Everything?"

I nodded. "Everything."

"What's my moms name?" He asked.

"Liz," I smiled at him. "We met at that barbecue that Calum had when he ended up burning all the food and Liz ordered pizzas."

"You do remember." He smiled, leaning down and pressing his lips against mine.

I smiled against his lips. "I love you so much."

He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and hugged me gently, tears falling down his cheeks. "I love you so fucking much, Bell."

***

Over the next couple weeks in the hospital, I found out that the car accident basically reversed my condition. I got a broken leg, broken ribs, bruised basically every part of my body, and a DUI, but I was alive. And I could remember Luke.

Down to the very last detail. He was back in his entirety, I could remember every detail that made him miserable that I didn't know. I could remember his favorite things, his least favorite things. How he used to order pizza with pepperoni and mushrooms because he knows how much I loved it and then he'd pick the mushrooms off when I wasn't around because he hates them.

Somehow, I'd never caught that before. How he used to play my songs in the car even when he wanted to listen to his hard rock music. When I studied, I had to have music on in the back. But it had to be something soft, sometimes classical music. Luke hated it. But he would play it or let me play it because he knew how much I liked it.

All the sacrifices I made to be with Luke, school, my career, my family, it was all for him and I wouldn't change it for the world. Luke gave up his career in music to stay with me, he's dedicated his entire life to being loyal to me and I could never be more grateful to have him.

"I love you." Luke whispered to me, his arms wrapped around me in the hospital bed.

I closed my eyes and placed my head on his chest, listening to his heart beat against my ear. "I love you, Lucas."